THE BLACK AND WHITE CREEPER. 201 



little moss, and lined with finer blades of the former and a 

 few long hairs. The eggs are fonr or five in number, of 

 a sullied-white color, and covered with small brown spots, 

 collected chiefly towards the larger end." 



Suh-Family Sylvicolin^. — TJie Wood-warhlers. 

 MNIOTILTA, ViEiLLOT. 



Mniotilta, Vieillot, Analyse, 1816 (Agassiz). 



General form sylvicoline; bill rather long, compressed, shorter than the head, 

 with very short rictal bristles and a shallow notch ; wings considerably longer than 

 the tail, which is slightly rounded ; first quill shorter than second and third ; tarsi 

 rather short ; toes long, middle one equal to the tarsus ; hind toe nearly as long, the 

 claw considerably shorter than its digit. Color white streaked with black. 



This genus differs from other SylvicoUnes in the elongation of the toes, especially 

 the hinder one, by means of which the species is enabl-ed to move up and down the 

 trunks of trees, like the true Creepers. But one species is recognized as North 

 American, although Nuttall describes a second. 



MNIOTILTA VARIA. — Vieillot. 

 The Black and White Creeper. 



Motacilla varia, Linnjeus. Syst. Nat., I. (1766) 333. 



Mniotilta varia, Yieillot. Analyse (1016). 76., Galerie Ois., I. (1834) 276. Aud. 

 Syn. (1839), 71. 3, Birds Am., II. (1841) 105. 



Sylvia varia, Bonaparte. Syn. (1828), 81. Nutt. Man , I. (1832) 384. 

 Certhia maculata, Wilson. Am. Orn., III. (1811) 22. 



Description. 



Bill with the upper mandible considerably decurved, the lower straight; general 

 color of the male black, the feathers broadly edged with white ; the head all round 

 black, with a median stripe in the crown and neck above, a superciliaiy and a max- 

 illary one of white; middle of belly, two conspicuous bands on the wings, outer 

 edges of tertials and inner of all the wing and tail feathers, and a spot on the inner 

 webs of the outer two tail feathers, white; rump and upper tail coverts black, 

 edged externally with white; female similar; the under parts white, obsoletelv 

 streaked with black on the sides and under tail coverts. 



Length, five inches; wing, two and eighty-five one-hundredths inches; tail, two 

 and twenty-five one-hundredths inches. 



Hab. — Eastern North America to Missouri River, south to Guatemala. 



This is a rather common summer inhabitant of all New 

 England. It arrives from the South before the 20tli of 



